Moment of Truth
by Lupin-73276
Summary: Story Prompt; Merlin/Arthur established relationship, magic reveal at the Battle of Camlann.


_Disclaimer; I do NOT own the characters of Merlin. This is for entertainment purposes only, non-profit. No infringement intended._

_A.N: Okay, this story was inspired by a story prompt from kweandee. When I read it, it inspired me and I had to write a story for it. This is what was created._

_**.**_

* * *

"Tonight," Arthur pauses looking at the faces of his men stood before him, many of them far too young to die. The heavy weight of what lies ahead of them lingers in the air. "We do battle." He looks at Leon, for a momentary reassurance that a friend is with him in this hour of need; only wishing that Merlin was by his side. Leon stares back at the King, swallowing the lump stuck in his throat.

"Tonight, we end this war. We end a war as old as the land itself. A war against tyranny and greed, spite." Arthur looks at the faces of the brave souls in front of him, all ready and willing to sacrifice their lives for the Kingdom. "Not all will greet the dawn, some will live, some will die. But each and every one of you fights with honour and with pride. But not only do we fight for our lives, we fight for the future; the future of Camelot, the future of Albion, the future of the United Kingdoms." Arthur draws his sword, Excalibur, and raises the blade in the air above his head. "For the love of Camelot!"

"For the love of Camelot!" The knights echo their King's cry, drawing their weapons. Arthur gazes upon his men, his pride of them swelling in his heart; but he still yearns for the comforting presence of his lover.

* * *

Merlin pulls away from the scene reflected in the crystal, he turns to his father. "Thank you. For your help, your guidance."

"I only offered a hand. You stand tall on your own two feet Merlin, you always have done." Balinor replies.

Merlin tilts his head, smiling and replies. "Well, as did you, father." Balinor huffs out a small laugh. "I follow in your footsteps."

"Your journey has only just begun; you wield a power you cannot yet conceive of. Only in the heart of the crystal cave will your true self be revealed." Merlin looks ahead upon the upward climb of rock and crystal. "Move towards the light. Your destiny awaits." The young man shuffles a step as his father speaks "Do not be afraid. Trust in what you are. Trust in what will be." Merlin looks into Balinor's eyes as his says those words, trusting his father.

Merlin steps towards the bright, white light starting his upward climb. He looks back. "Goodbye Father."

"There are no goodbyes Emrys, for I will always be. As you will always be." Merlin smiles slightly at the older man. He then turns away and continues his assent towards the light, towards Arthur.

* * *

The Knights of Camelot stand face to face with the Saxons, whom strike their swords against their shields to create on ominous repeated clang. Morgana stands high above the men, watching.

Arthur draws Excalibur, the knights following his lead. "On me!" Arthur cries, and the army of Camelot rushes towards the enemy.

The Saxons waste no time in charging to meet them, shouting battle cries. The two opposing forces clash together, a tight pack of men fight each other with reinforcements behind them.

The secondary Camelot unit, led by Sir Percival charge into fighting with the Saxons they were sent to apprehend.

The air is filled with the loud shouts and the clang of meeting swords. King Arthur is in the middle of the fight battling his way through the Saxons, cutting them down one by one.

Morgana looks on as she spots Mordred striding through the crowd, killing those in his path as he searches for his target.

* * *

Boulders scatter as a force blasts them out of the cave entrance. Merlin, disguised as Emrys, emerges from the dust with a determined look in his eye.

* * *

At Camlann the war rages on, Arthur still battling the enemy with Sir Leon not far behind him.

Mordred is frantically looking for his mark when he finds himself surrounded by Camelot Knights, once his comrades. Morgana's eyes flash gold and a blast throws the knights away from the fiend, he looks back to his commander and she nods at him to continue on his way.

A sudden shrill cry echoes through the air as Aithusa, the young white dragon, flies above the fighting men. They duck and cover their heads as the dragon breathes fire across the battle ground, before flying out of view again.

The dragon is momentarily forgotten as the vicious fighting continues. Arthur spins after landing a fatal blow to his opponent to see several Saxons running straight towards him, he holds up his blade ready to challenge them. A sudden force and flash of light sends the Saxons flying and they land a few yards away. A bolt of lightning strikes the other Saxons surrounding the King. Arthur confusedly looks at the fallen soldiers before turning his eyes skyward, where he sees Emrys stood above the battle ground. Arthur watches as the sorcerer once again protects him from oncoming Saxons.

Morgana fills with anger at the appearance of her nemesis. "EMRYS!" she screams just before a blast sends her tumbling off her pedestal onto the ground where she lay amongst fallen warriors.

Emrys continues to strike down the Saxons, as Arthur watches on, when the cry of Aithusa once again fills the air. Arthur looks to the dragon with fear. Emrys' voice echoes through the valley as he speaks in ancient tongue, commanding the drake, and the animal soon takes heed as flies away. Arthur watches the animal disappear in wonder.

The King turns back to his knights, swings his blade above his head and cries for all to hear "For the love of Camelot!" He and his knight charge forward again, towards the enemy.

Emrys walks among the fallen; making sure the enemy is dead and looking for Camelot survivors, and Morgana.

Arthur rushes to a fallen comrades' side as they lay dying, unaware of the danger walking up behind him. The sound of a sword being draw and light footsteps alert Arthur to the presence of another. He stands and turns, his sword clashes with another, he pushes them away. Surprise clouds his face when he sees his opponent. The assailant moves and his sword slices through flesh.

Mordred looks up at his victim not in victory but in surprise and anger, for his sword had not pierced Arthur but Emrys. The warlock stood in front of the young man with Arthur lay stunned behind him; the sorcerer had pushed Arthur down and taken the blow himself. Mordred retracts his weapon, his eyes glinting with malicious intent as he takes a step back a braces himself to land a cruel blow to the man who had come between him and his intended target.

Before Mordred can land his strike his feels pain burst through his chest, he looks down to see Excalibur impaling him. Arthur had knelt up as Emrys had stepped aside to allow the King to kill his would be assassin. Mordred is seething at his failure to kill Arthur but smiles madly regardless because he knows that Arthur will always carry the guilt of the younger man's downfall. The druid falls to the ground, blood seeping from his wound with unseeing eyes.

Arthur stands to face his saviour, who was slowly bleeding from his wound. "I am going to have to borrow your sword." Emrys says to Arthur, holding out his hand. "I will return it to you." After moments of thinking Arthur slowly hands the swords over.

"Go." Emrys urged to the King. Arthur hesitates for a moment before running ahead, towards the rest of his men and the retreating Saxons. Emrys follows slowly behind.

* * *

The Knights of Camelot are making their way back to the tents for medical treatment, food, water and to see if they can be of any help to others. Arthur greets Gwen, who has been in charge of the areas where the injured are being treated. They may no longer be in love with each other, but they are friends, and she is the woman that has agreed to be the mother of his child in the future to ensure the Pendragon bloodline (with the blessing of Merlin).

Arthur stands outside the tents greeting the returning knights who are carrying the injured from the battle field. He meets Leon who confirms that 200 men have been sent to drive the advantage home after the Saxons started their full retreat. The battle was finally won.

* * *

"There is no escape."

Morgana turns around to see Emrys stood behind her as she tries to flee Camlann. They are stood at the mouth of the battle field, within viewing distance of Camelot's base.

"Emrys." She sneers. "Or should I call you Merlin." She cackles lightly, her bright green eyes showing her contempt for the other sorcerer. "How is your King?" She asks, smiling gleefully.

"Alive and well." Emrys answers. "As it was not him who received the blow from your assassin." He moves his hand to reveal the blood stain on his robes.

Morgana stares at the wound and grits her teeth, bubbling with anger. "You may have saved him from Mordred, but I will see him dead. Even if I have to kill him myself!" She sends a blast towards him, which he easily deflects. It only angers her more.

* * *

At the camp Arthur is distracted from thinking where Merlin may be when he hears a crack of thunder. He turns to see flashes of light and fire, he starts running towards it. Several of the knights, Gwen and Gaius also see the display and chase after their King.

The group stop a few yards away to witness a magical battle between Morgana and an older sorcerer who only some of them knew to be Emrys, and only Gaius knew to be Merlin.

The fight lasted for 20 minutes before Morgana fell to her knees gasping for air. Emrys walked towards the woman, not realising that the wrinkles on his skin were starting to fade.

"I blame myself for what you've become. This has to end." Emrys says drawing Excalibur from behind his back.

"I'm a high priestess. No mortal blade can kill me" She laughs.

Emrys thrusts the blade into her chest. "This is no mortal blade. Like yours." Panic shows on Morgana's face as she gasps for air. "It was forged in a dragon's breath." He pushes the blade further into her body and her breath hitches.

She falls flat on the ground and he pulls the sword from her body, her breath stutters. "Goodbye Morgana." Emrys says as her last breath escapes her lips.

Merlin drops the blade and stumbles on his feet, finally allowing himself to feel his injuries; pain courses through his body and he can still feel his magic running through his veins.

"Merlin." Gwen mummers in disbelief.

It is then that Merlin realises that his disguise has fallen away and he looks like himself again, looking into the reflection of Excalibur he can see that he eyes are still golden. He looks to his audience, seeing them for the first time. His gaze locks on Arthur.

"No." The plea slips though the warlocks lips. Panic grips him as he realises that Arthur now knows. He starts hyperventilating. He scrambles to stand up straight from where he had fallen to his knees, blood seeps from his flesh wounds as he moves. He starts running away from his friends and towards the shelter of the crystal cave.

"Merlin!" Gwen calls after her friend, trying to stop him from fleeing.

Arthur is pulled out of his shocked state by Gwen's voice. He steps forward to follow Merlin but a weight on his arm pulls him back. He turns to see Gaius.

"Not yet Arthur. He needs time to heal and calm down. If you chase him now he will panic and it will worsen his condition. Come with me."

Gaius takes everyone back to the camp he proceeds to sit down with Arthur, Gwen, Leon, Gwaine and Percival; and tells them about the prophecies surrounding Merlin. He starts by saying "There are those who say he's the greatest sorcerer ever to walk the earth." The five listen with close attention, taking in every detail Gaius tells them.

Gwen is the first to speak. "I am pleased." She smiles genuinely; she now knows that Merlin has always been protecting them. The others follow with similar sentiments.

"But why were his eyes still gold?" Gwaine asks, they others turn to Gaius waiting for an answer.

"Well, my theory is that he used so much magic, killing the Saxons, fighting Morgana and then healing himself that his magic stayed at the surface. Merlin is only used to using small doses of magic at a time. Today he used more than he has ever used before, plus he was severely injured. So his eyes remained gold because his magic needed to stay present to heal his body." The group nod as it seems like a reasonable answer.

Despite the prejudice against magic that still lingers in Camelot they all know Merlin, and know that he would never harm them or the Kingdom. They all turn to Arthur.

The blonde King had been silent throughout the talk trying to absorb all the new information. He looks up at Gaius. "I need to see him."

Gaius nods. "I'm guessing he will be at the crystal caves. Gwaine, you know where they are." Gwaine nods in reply.

* * *

Merlin sits in the caves surrounded by white crystals which reflect the light from outside, lighting the cave up in a bluish glow. His sobs echo through the vast spaces which makes him feel more alone. He feels his magic under his skin, knitting some his flesh back together to stop the bleeding; slowly healing his injuries and pain. He may still need stitches to fully close his wounds and they will need to be treated to prevent infection. The blood soon stops flowing and the pain dulls, he turns to a crystal to stare at his reflection. His eyes are still glowing slightly golden as his magic starts to calm down; he drifts into a light sleep.

He is awoken by the thud of horse hooves and curls tighter into himself, hoping that whoever they were would leave soon.

"Merlin?" The sound of Gwaine calling his name makes Merlin lift his head. He considers his options for a moment, deciding that he needs treatment and he would rather not be on his own he opens his mouth to call for his friend.

"Merlin!" Arthur calls his name. Merlin shuts his mouth so quickly that his teeth clack together. "Merlin." He hears his King call again, closer this time. Merlin trips over his own feet trying to rise from the ground, he shuffles further away from where the call came from. But in his panic he loses his footing and crashes to the ground, a pained sound escapes his mouth. He slaps his hands across his face, in shock and to prevent any other sounds escaping, but it's too late.

"Merlin." Gwaine sighs in relief as he spots his friend sat on the floor, he rushed to Merlin's side but stops when the smaller man flinches. "Merlin ... I would never hurt you." Gwaine stutters, but Merlin still shrinks away from him because he knows Arthur is not far behind; and sure enough moments later Percival and Leon enter the space with Arthur following behind.

The blonde man just stares at his lover for a few moments, Merlin stares back like a deer in front of a hunter's arrow. Merlin blinks and looks away. Arthur walks closer but stops when Merlin shuffles away.

The King sits down on a nearby stone, the Knights follow his lead all sitting down where they stand.

"I thought I knew you." Arthur breaks the silence.

Merlin looks at him. "I'm still the same person."

"I trusted you."

"I'm sorry." Merlin chokes on his words a little.

"Gaius told me, about you. About the prophesies, how you had always protected me and Camelot."

"It's my destiny." Merlin replies, he gains confidence a little knowing his eyes are no longer gold and no one has tried to kill him yet. "As it has been since the day we met."

Arthur smiles."I tried to take your head off with a mace."

"And I stopped you using magic."

"You cheated!" Arthur says disbelievingly. Merlin and the knight share a small laugh.

Merlin and Arthur look at each other. "Merlin.."

"Don't talk, I need to explain ..."

"I'm the King Merlin you can't tell me what to do." Arthur replies, humour in his eyes.

"I always have, I'm not going to change now." Merlin chuckles, feeling at ease after laughing together.

Arthur looks are Merlin. "I don't want you to change." Merlin stops smiling and looks at Arthur seriously. "I want you to always be you. Everything you've done I know now, for me, for Camelot, for the kingdom you helped me build." Arthur smiles fondly at Merlin. "Thank you." Tears slide down Merlin's face as he stares at Arthur unbelieving of the words he had just heard.

The blonde man walks towards him with a smile on his face. Merlin sits immobile as Arthur holds out his hand for the dark haired warlock to take. A moment of silence passes.

"Merlin. Come home with me." Arthur whispers. A small sob escapes Merlin's mouth as he jumps up into Arthur's arms, clutching at the blonde man as if he would disappear if Merlin let go. "I love you." Arthur murmurs directly into Merlin's ear which causes Merlin to let out a sob again.

"I love you too Arthur." He cries. Arthur hugs him tighter. "Ouch" Merlin exclaims, Arthur quickly pulls back.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry. We better go get those wounds treated." Arthur laughed before pulling the warlock into a gentler embrace.

Gwaine, Leon and Percival smile at each other knowing that Camelot is going to be a happier place and safer with a powerful sorcerer protecting it.


End file.
